Demand and spot prices for ferrochrome had increased “noticeably” in the past four weeks, as a result of the Chinese stimulus programme and low ferrochrome inventories, International Ferro Metals (IFM) CEO David Kovarsky said last week.

He noted in a statement to shareholders that sales to China had outweighed sales to other markets in the quarter ended June 30, and that increased demand from Europe and North America had been seen in the past few weeks.

Kovarsky added that the European settle- ment price for the quarter to the end of September 2009 had increased from $0,69/lb to $0,89/lb, while spot prices had “firmed noticeably” since the settlement date.

The increased demand from China, lower inventories and higher prices were expected to result in continued firmer demand in the short term, said Kovarsky.

“We will continue to monitor the market to assess global inventory levels, demand and pricing going forward. The combination of our healthy cash balance and recently upgraded facilities means that IFM can respond quickly to a sustained increase in demand,” he noted.

IFM had increased its production by 17 269 t, to 18 437 t, in the June quarter, compared with the 1 168 t produced in the previous quarter.

However, this was down 67% on the 56 608 t produced in the June 2008 quarter. The full-year production for the 2009 financial year was also down 46%, to 110 364 t, compared with 205 607 t for the 2008 financial year.

Sales volumes for the quarter were up nearly 300%, to 41 916 t, compared with the 10 484 t produced in the March 2008 quarter. This led to a reduction of IFM’s stockpile to 9 362 t, in line with its target of 10 000 t.

Its stockpile stood at 33 207 t in that quarter. Sales volumes for the 2009 finan- cial year were down 51%, to 101 835 t, compared with the 207 862 t sold in the 2008 financial year.

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